The present invention relates to garment hangers and more particularly to end-clips for garment hangers which can include a retention means or stop member which allows for improved retention of garments such as undergarments, e.g., bras and underpants.
Examples of garment hangers that can be used with the present invention include, but are not limited to, those shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,629,102, 4,828,155, 5,632,423 and 6,357,638. The disclosures of these patents are incorporated by reference herein. In these hangers, for example , the strap of a bra is secured in the hanger end-clip between a pressing member and an elongated bar portion of the hanger.
Referring now to
Thus, as evidenced by U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,423, it is desirable to have a hanger that can accommodate both thick and thin garments, as well as a variety of materials, and in addition, which can retain these garments in their proper position once arranged on the hanger.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,357,638 claims a stop formation that is not located substantially adjacent to the end of the pressing member. The patent further claims instead, that the stop formation is located above the inner arm, along the trajectory of the outer end of the inner arm, so as to block access along a predetermined path or trajectory described by the end of the inner arm, as it flexes upwardly in response to the presence of a narrow strap. The patent goes on to claim that by moving the stop formation upwardly, they block access to the inner space when the inner arm is flexed upwardly.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a garment hanger having a gripping mechanism, as well as an optional stop member for retaining the garment in a desired position within the gripping mechanism.
The garment hanger has garment support means which are located at the ends of a bar which includes a means for suspending the bar from a support or rack. The garment support means or clip include a connecting part, an arm, a carrier element, and an elongated stiff pressing member. The connecting part is joined at one end to the bar and at the other end to the arm which extends in a direction towards the center of the bar. The arm has a free end which forms a space between the arm and the bar. The carrier element is located at the end of the arm away from the connecting part on the side which faces towards the bar. The elongated stiff pressing member is supported by the carrier element so that the pressing member is biased towards the bar by the arm and so that a part of a garment is receivable in between the pressing member and the bar. In addition, the pressing member is generally in the form of an elongated beam which is substantially, centrally and pivotally supported by the free end of the associated carrier element. Finally, the part which is of reduced width in relation to the connecting part is located on the side of the connecting part which faces toward the carrier element. This part of reduced width crosses the part to bias the carrier element and the pressing member toward the bar during post-loading shrinkage. This reduced with part results in an increase in the tension of the garment due to decrease in the space between the bar and the pressing member. The pressing member and the carrier element have selectively strengthened locations.
The garment support means can further include a stop member which is positioned on the connection part of the arm on the side facing the pressing member. This stop member maintains the position of the garment between the pressing member and the bar by preventing the garment from moving around the end of the pressing member into the space between the pressing member and the bar.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention which refers to the accompanying drawings.
The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings:
Referring to
The end-clip or support means 56 includes a stiff garment pressing member 52. In
The pressing member 52 has an outwardly curved end 26 and at its opposite end terminates into an at least partially curved head 30. A gap or area B for inserting a garment is defined between the pressing member 52 and the bar 54.
The stop member 50 is provided on the inside face of the connecting part 24. As shown in
As stated previously, it is preferred that the pressing member 52 is stiff, but pivotable about the carrier 20. The arm 22 and the connecting part 24 are flexible so that a spring effect is produced. In other words, if pressure is applied on the pressing member 52 when inserting a garment, the gap B widens, the pressing member 52 pivots about the carrier 20 according to the position of the force applied on it and the arm 22 and connecting part 24 flex to allow the gap B to widen as is required.
As shown in
The stop member 50 can be made of any material, e.g., a rigid or flexible plastic material, so long as it acts in conjunction with the pressing member 52 to prevent the strap of a garment, for example, from traveling into area A. Preferably, the stop member 50 is made of a resilient or spring-like material so that when a garment is inserted into area B and the pressing member 52 abuts against the stop member 50, the stop member 50 exerts a force towards the pressing member 52 to more securely retain the garment in the area B between the pressing member 52 and the bar 54.
The exemplary embodiment shown in
From the above embodiments it is thus apparent that the stop member 50 can be used in connection with a wide variety of end-clips which can have varying configurations.
Additionally, the stop member itself can have various configurations which fulfill the objectives of the invention. See the exemplary embodiments of
In
The embodiment in
In
A stop member 50e in
In
Stop member 50g illustrated in
In all of the exemplary embodiments shown in
Referring now to
Although shown without a stop arrangement, it is possible to add a stop arrangement in the embodiment of
Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art.
This application is related to and claims priority of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. Nos. 60,411,798, filed Sep. 17, 2002 and 60,411,799, filed Sep. 17, 2002.
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